Trading share CFDs can be a fantastic way to capitalize on the significant moves that stock equities can produce. However, the offering among retail brokers varies wildly in the number of share CFDs available to trade on, their spreads, and commissions.
Fortunately, we have been reviewing brokers since 2011, so we know the best from the rest. Drawing on my own personal experience as a trader and broker reviewer, I’ve identified the top 7 share CFD brokers to consider below.
*AvaTrade doesn’t allow CFD trading in Spain; only Futures are available.
Our team of experts has identified each broker’s strengths and weaknesses using FXEmpire’s comprehensive methodology.
This analysis and my own trading experience have led to the findings and research below for the best forex brokers for share CFD trading.
Founded in 1999 and based in London, FxPro is our best overall share CFD broker for international traders. Over 1,862 share CFDs are available to trade on from the MT5 platform, including 50 stocks in extended hours. With zero deposit and withdrawal fees, market research and trading signals from Trading Central, FxPro takes the number one spot.
Key Features:
I found that of the 1,862 share CFDs available to trade on, they mostly cover the USA, UK, Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, and Switzerland. There are also 46 ETF CFDs from the USA available to trade on. This is a strong lineup of instruments that beats the industry average of 200-300 share CFDs.
After opening the FxPro Raw+ Account, which offers the tightest spreads with no commission on share CFDs, I found a spread of 17 cents for Apple CFDs, which is better than the 24 cents industry average. It was even better for Tesla, which had a spread of just 21 cents, much better than the industry average of 41 cents, making FxPro a cost-effective broker for stock CFD traders.
While FxPro does offer many other trading platforms, you can only trade share CFDs through MetaTrader 5. This is not a bad thing, as MT5 has been the go-to platform for multi-asset class traders for decades. I like to use the MT5 desktop platform as it has the highest level of customization and you can buy automated trading strategies to use from MetaTrader Market.
Founded in 2005, FP Markets is a top broker to consider for cost-conscious stock traders seeking the best spreads. I found over 10,000 share CFDs are available to trade on from 5 trading platforms covering the USA, Australia, the UK, and European stock exchanges. There’s also an option for direct market access (DMA) trading on the Iress platform, providing low spreads and transparent pricing.
Key Features:
During our live fee test, I found the spread on Apple CFDs during the New York open was 9 cents, beating the industry average of 33 cents. There is a 2-cent per share commission on US shares, which is also better than the industry average. I was impressed with the low minimum charge of just 2 USD per side, which is significantly better than other brokers like IG’s $15 minimum charge.
Where I believe FP Markets really stands out is the ability to trade over 800 share CFDs directly from the TradingView platform. This is because TradingView has the largest social trading community in the world, sharing different trading ideas, which is helpful for beginners. The platform has a very powerful stock scanner with technical and fundamental analysis filters, which helps me to scan thousands of stocks from all over the world very quickly.
I also found the Iress platform and account offers Direct Market Access trading on over 10,000 share CFDs. This means you can view the order book from the stock exchange and place orders directly with them, which can provide more precise trade execution and lower spreads.
Founded in 2006, AvaTrade is rated as the top share CFD broker for beginners. The AvaAcademy is full of courses, webinars and videos useful for aspiring stock traders. Trading Central offers helpful stock market research and stock trading ideas and beginners can access share CFD copy trading from DupliTrade.
Key Features:
In our live fee test, I found the spread on Apple CFDs was 23 cents at the New York open, beating the 33 cents industry average. With zero commission, deposit and withdrawals, and low overnight swap fees, AvaTrade can be a good fit for beginners who want to keep the costs down when starting out. However, this an inactivity fee of 10 base currency units if the account is dormant for 2 months, which may be tight for some traders.
Where AvaTrade really stands out for beginners is the wealth of resources in the AvaAcademy. I was impressed with the wide range of trading courses and webinars available that cover key trading concepts for beginners, like trading psychology, risk management, technical and fundamental analysis. There are also dedicated courses just for share CFD trading which offer valuable and helpful information.
Another standout feature is that beginners can access two copy trading apps in AvaSocial and Duplitrade. I found that there are many share CFD traders you can follow and copy when connecting your account to Duplitrade. This can be a useful way to gain exposure to the market, while learning at the same time and, in the future, become a strategy provider to increase your earnings.
Founded in 1997, we found that Libertex offers a proprietary, feature-rich trading app that offers a quick and efficient way to trade the market on the move, with helpful market research and insights to trade on over 1,130 share CFDs and also invest in real stocks.
Key Features:
Libertex offers the well-known and popular MT4 and MT5 mobile trading apps and its own proprietary Libertex app. The MT5 app is an upgraded version of MT4 and offers far more timeframes, chart types, and indicators. You can also access basic drawing tools like horizontal lines and trend lines, and plot them onto your chart from the app. These are great features for technical analysis traders on the move, and the MT5 app is my preference.
I found the Libertex app is also very useful to trade on the move, offering quick order execution with several timeframes and chart types available. It is tailored to more fundamental traders as it offers built-in market research, news, overviews, an economic calendar, and weekly digests covering economics and market-moving news – things the MT4/MT5 apps don’t offer. However, the Libertex app doesn’t include any technical indicators or drawing tools, so it is not ideal for technical traders.
Our live fee test showed the spread on Apple CFDs was 16 cents during the New York open, beating the 33 cents industry average. With no commission per trade or deposit fees, Libertex is useful for traders who seek a variety of mobile apps to trade from.
Established in 2009, Vantage provides a good range of extra trading tools for the MT4 platform to support share CFD trading. Authorized and regulated by ASIC, VFSC, CIMA, and FSCA you can trade US, European and Australian shares using the Vantage Smart Trader Tools MT4 package.
Key Features:
I was impressed by the range of different trading platforms Vantage offers. MT4/MT5 have been the gold standard of trading CFDs for many years, and the desktop platform offers a high level of customization and automated trading capabilities and mainly geared to intermediate/advanced traders. TradingView has now superseded the popularity of MetaTrader, as it’s become the largest social trading platform in the world, where you can share and view trading ideas and access more indicators and tools, and is a great option for beginners and casual traders.
The Vantage Web Trading platform is also impressive. I found it the easiest and most user-friendly of all the trading platforms, with the ability to manage all your accounts from one place, one-click trading execution and charts powered by TradingView. My favorite feature is the ability to switch between light and dark modes at the click of a button.
During our live fee test at the New York open, I found the spread on Apple CFDs was 16 cents, beating the industry average of 33 cents. With zero commission for share CFDs, no deposit, withdrawal or inactivity fees, Vantage is a top broker to consider.
Founded in 1974, IG is listed on the London Stock Exchange and offers one of the largest ranges of products and services for professional traders. This includes over 17,000 global share CFDs, options and forward contracts, 13,000+ real stocks with access to multiple trading and investing accounts, as well as Direct Market Access (DMA) share CFDs and stock options and IPOs.
Key Features:
IG offers one of the largest selections of share CFDs and real stocks in the industry, covering the UK, Europe, the US, and Asia. It also offers access to trade upcoming IPOs and options, as well as forward contracts to hold stock trades for longer without any overnight fees. These can all be accessed from IG’s Online Platform, which I found is feature-rich and easy to use. The web platform is highly customizable and offers a news feed, one-click trading, the ability to trade from the chart, market sentiment data, a stock screener and trading signals from Autochartist.
The ProRealTime platform is geared to automated share CFD traders and is unique as it offers a beginner-friendly way to code strategies using its ProRealCode. I actively use this function and have no coding experience, but I managed to create scanners to filter stocks based on technical analysis indicators very easily. My favorite feature, which is fairly new, is that you can also trade share CFDs with IG from TradingView. I trade many of the hundreds of 24-hour US stocks IG provides, and I found it easy to set up and trade with good quality trade execution.
My fee test and the New York open showed Apple CFD spread of 3 cents, which is much better than the 33 cents industry average. However, as IG doesn’t widen the market spread, it does charge a commission of 2 cents per share on US stocks, which is around the industry average. Professionally categorized traders can also access IG’s trading desk platform called L2 Dealer and access Direct Market Access share CFDs, where you can view the order book and place orders directly with the exchange.
Founded in 2008 and listed on the London Stock Exchange, Plus500 is a giant in the industry with a market cap of over $4 billion. It’s a top broker for US traders as it provides access to futures contracts from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Kalshi exchange-listed prediction market contracts, all from an easy-to-use WebTrader platform and mobile app.
Key Features:
While share CFDs are not available in the US, it is still possible to trade equity index futures contracts, which can offer some of the same conditions as trading long and short on margin. Plus500 US offers benchmark contracts such as the E-mini S&P 500, E-mini Dow Jones, E-mini Nasdaq-100, and Nikkei, as well as micro contracts like the Micro E-mini Dow Jones. Micro contracts are useful for beginner traders as they allow you to trade with a small account. For example, the margin requirement for the Micro E-mini Dow Jones is just $50 per contract.
I found it interesting that the broker also offers access to prediction markets from the Kalshi exchange. This provides an alternative way to speculate on the stock market. Currently, I saw a market for ‘Will GameStop acquire eBay this year?’ and ‘S&P close price end of 2026?’. This opens up a wealth of trading opportunities alongside the traditional speculation in established markets.
I found it very easy to trade with the Plus500 WebTrader platform and mobile app. They have a user-friendly design, offer live charts without any extra fees and multiple order types. With a low minimum deposit, useful educational resources and helpful chat support from our live test, Plus500 US is a top broker to consider.
The forex and CFD analysts and editors at FXEmpire bring together seasoned trading professionals and experienced financial journalists. Many of our experts have been featured in leading publications such as Investopedia and Forbes, and all of them combine strong industry credentials with hands-on trading experience.
Dan Blystone began his career in the trading industry in 1998 on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Later, Dan gained insight into the forex industry during his time as a Series 3 licensed futures and forex broker. He also traded at a couple of different prop trading firms in Chicago. Dan is well-equipped to recommend the best forex brokers due to his extensive experience and understanding of the brokerage industry.
Jitan Solanki is a professional trader, market analyst, and educator. He day trades major currency and index markets and focuses on swing trading US equities and commodities. A qualified Market Technician, Jitan also works with trader education and brokerage companies on various projects. These include market analysis, live trading events, and broker reviews. As an experienced trader and educator, Jitan brings all his qualities in action when reviewing and recommending brokers.
Having been a retail trader since 2013, Plamen has gained an in-depth understanding of the challenges that novice traders face today. His expertise is swing trading and day trading with a heavy emphasis on psychological and fundamental analysis. Plamen’s favourite trading instruments include FX majors and gold. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Economics and International Relations. Plamen's broad experience has equipped him with the expertise to recommend the best forex brokers.
In more than 15 years of trading in the financial markets, Vladimir dealt with a wide range of brokers and financial instruments. His career as a day-trader at a proprietary trading firm goes back to 2007. Later, Vladimir turned to longer time frames and became an independent trader and analyst managing his own portfolio. Using his experience, he helps traders find the best broker in his reviews.
Jitan Solanki is a professional trader, market analyst, and educator. He day trades major currency and index markets and focuses on swing trading US equities and commodities. A qualified Market Technician, Jitan also works with trader education and brokerage companies on various projects. These include market analysis, live trading events, and broker reviews. As an experienced trader and educator, Jitan brings all his qualities in action when reviewing and recommending brokers.
At FXEmpire, we strive to provide unbiased, thorough and accurate broker reviews by industry experts to help our users make smarter financial decisions.